Driver Sues Tesla, Service King Over Utah Autopilot Crash

Sept. 18, 2018
A woman who was behind the wheel of a Tesla that crashed into a fire truck at high speeds is suing Tesla and a service provider, saying the Autopilot feature failed to work as advertised.

September 18, 2018—A woman who was behind the wheel of a Tesla that crashed into a fire truck at high speeds in South Jordan, Utah, is suing Tesla and a service provider, reported Fox 13.

According to a lawsuit filed at the beginning of September, Heather P. Lommatzsch is suing Tesla Inc., Tesla Motors Utah Inc, and Service King Paint & Body over the crash, which occurred in May of this year.

The lawsuit alleges negligence and breach of warranty on the part of Tesla and negligence on the part of Service King, stating that the vehicle's Autopilot mode failed to stop the vehicle before it crashed into the back of a Unified Fire Authority fire truck at a high rate of speed, according to the report.

The lawsuit states the Autopilot did not engage in time to prevent the crash and further claims that Lommatzsch "attempted to brake but the brakes did not engage."

The lawsuit states Service King replaced a sensor on the vehicle sometime in the year leading up to the crash.

After suffering injuries in the crash, Lommatzsch is seeking damages n the amount of at least $300,000, according to Fox 13.

According to a report released by the South Jordan Police Department, the Tesla autopilot data recovered from the crash showed the driver repeatedly cancelled and re-engaged Autosteer and Traffic Aware Cruise Control, the driver's hands were on and off the wheel on multiple occasions and "contrary to the proper use of Autopilot,the driver did not pay attention to the road at all times, did not keep her hands on the steering wheel and she used it on a street with no center median and with stoplight controlled intersections."

The police department issued a traffic citation to the driver based upon the findings of its investigation, according to the release.

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